Waiting for 'The Rogue' -- Sarah Palin the Mother of 'Stupid Conservatism'

Sarah Palin has tried to invent a new variant of conservatism, calling it common-sense conservatism. But, in "Egghead and Blockheads," Maureen Dowd writes:

... The Republicans are now the “How great is it to be stupid?” party. In perpetrating the idea that there’s no intellectual requirement for the office of the presidency, the right wing of the party offers a Farrelly Brothers “Dumb and Dumber” primary in which evolution is avant-garde.

Having grown up with a crush on William F. Buckley Jr. for his sesquipedalian facility, it’s hard for me to watch the right wing of the G.O.P. revel in anti-intellectualism and anti-science cant.

Sarah Palin, who got outraged at a “gotcha” question about what newspapers and magazines she read, is the mother of stupid conservatism. Another “Don’t Know Much About History” Tea Party heroine, Michele Bachmann, seems rather proud of not knowing anything, simply repeating nutty, inflammatory medical claims that somebody in the crowd tells her.

So we’re choosing between the overintellectualized professor and blockheads boasting about their vacuity?

The occupational hazard of democracy is know-nothing voters. It shouldn’t be know-nothing candidates.

Dowd doesn't spare Rick Perry, either.

What may have happened to the republican party is that knowledgeable people were so appalled at the consequences of "Reagonomics," which led to two off-budget wars, deregulation and the financial collapse in 2008, that most of them no longer participate in the party. So, we see a lot of know-nothings on the stage at each debate. At the last debate, Jon Huntsman, according to The New York Times, told the other candidates:

"When you make comments that fly in the face of 98 out of 100 climate scientists, to call into question the science of evolution, all I am saying is that in order for the Republican Party to win, we can't run from science," Huntsman said. "By making comments that basically don't reflect the reality of the situation, we turn people off."

If republican primary voters are like most of the republican candidates, Huntsman has a snowball's chance in hell of winning the nomination.

Just one more day until Joe McGinniss' new book, “The Rogue: Searching for the Real Sarah Palin,” arrives. Sarah Palin died, politically, before the book was finished, but will it have any affect on "Palin, Inc?" Most of her speaking engagements seem to have been made with audiences of social conservatives, especially anti-choice groups. Will they continue to ask her to speak? What for? A pity party? Thing is, there are all sorts of pity parties people can attend, and no one may be interested in paying to attend one.